Are Humans Ethical By Nature Essay

There has been a huge debate throughout the years of whether humans are ethical by nature or not. Despite Christian Keyser’s research evidence that humans are ethical by nature, the evidence from the Milgram experiment shows that we are not ethical by nature. Humans learn to be ethical through genetic disposition as well as environmental factors such as culture, socialization, and parenting. In order to understand if we are ethical or not, we need to understand the difference between being moral or ethical. Many people believe that being moral and ethical are the same thing, but these two terms are a bit different. “Morality is primarily about making correct choices, while ethics is about proper reasoning” (Philosopher, web). Morality is more

If a child is neglected or abused by a parent or guardian, then such bad behaviors or mental disorders can develop. “According to Sigmund Freud the development of the unconscious personality early in childhood will influence behavior for the rest of one’s life” (Freeman, web). When a child has no foundation to learn from, they cannot learn how to be ethical. Also the child may not be able to be empathetic and learn how to understand other people’s feelings. “Childhood adversity, such as abuse, neglect, parental loss, and other stressful experiences, has been estimated to account for 45% of the variance in childhood-onset psychopathology and 26-32% of the risk for later-onset psychiatric disorders” (Burgers, web). An example of a child affected by a lack of parenting is a man named Charles Manson. He grew up in a very unstable home. His mother was a sixteen year old prostitute who tried to sell him for one bottle to alcohol. While growing up, he moved between different family members since his mother was incapable of raising a child. Manson said in his own words “Rejection, more than love or acceptance, has been a part of my life since birth” (Emmons, pg. 24). As a result of such neglect and abuse, Manson created an occult. He made the people in the occult his new family who he could control. He then manipulated them to kill multiple people. Manson was named the most dangerous man alive and has a book on his life experiences before the killings (Emmons, web). Another serial killer who was abused as a child is John Wayne Gacy. He was molested by his uncle on multiple occasions. He then raped and killed thirty-three young